The ever-sunny Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a quick stop at the Global Citizen Festival on the eve of the G20 summit in Hamburg, to chill with none other than British rockers Coldplay and pop star Shakira. Trudeau and his wife Sophie Gregoire made a powerful statement on gender equality and the importance of empowering women and girls in the fight for justice at the Global Citizen Festival – an event that raises awareness for issues related to global poverty.

Real power in global governance requires intellectual input into the international financial and economic agenda, policies and rules — the effective exercise of ‘soft’ power. [...] The major substantial outcomes of the G20 to date, including updating international financial regulatory rules through Basel III and international tax cooperation on tax havens, have been mostly led by the Atlantic countries.

Korea and China celebrate the 24th anniversary of diplomatic relations on Aug. 24, but bilateral ties have suffered considerably in recent months due to Seoul's decision to deploy an advanced U.S. missile defense system here. Amid rising tensions between the two countries, President Park Geun-hye will visit China to attend the 11th G20 summit in Hangzhou on Sept. 4 to 5.